Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Until then, entertain yourselves with this...Blog-Jacking: IO9Scientists Pick The Greatest Books And Movies Of All TimeOriginally posted Oct 1 2008By Charlie Jane AndersAt last, the most important works of science fiction are being determined scientifically. New Scientist magazine is doing a special science fiction issue on Nov. 15, and the magazine is polling its science-boffin readers as to the greatest books and movies in the genre. The magazine's own staff have already voted, and you might not be surprised by the books they put first. But you may have some issues with their most hated movies and books.

It's hard to quibble with their picks for best movies and books. Being mostly Brits, the New Scientist group put Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy at the top of the novel heap. Iain M. Banks would have won, but his vote was split among a few of his books. (Including Feersum Enjinn. Really?) Frank Herbert's Dune also came close to winning. The best movie, according to the NS crew, was Blade Runner, followed by 2001: A Space Odyssey, Solaris and Serenity.

The Guardian UK makes this bold statement: Respect for religion now makes censorship the norm. When publishers are too intimidated to print even novels that may offend, it shows how far we've lost our way on free speech. To read the screed, click here.

On a seriously somber note, the family of Anne of Green Gables author, Lucy Maud Montgomery, has come forward with a shocking revelation regarding the esteemed writer's death: It was a suicide, via an intentional drug overdose. Montgomery's granddaughter explains: "I have come to feel very strongly that the stigma surrounding mental illness will be forever upon us as a society until we sweep away the misconception that depression happens to other people, not us – and most certainly not to our heroes and icons...The fictional Anne went on to happiness and a life full of love and fulfilment. My grandmother's reality was not so positive, although she continues to inspire generations of readers with her books, which reveal her understanding of nature – both in matters of the heart and the world...I hope that by writing about my grandmother now there might be less secrecy and more awareness that will ease the unnecessary suffering so many people experience as a result of such depressions."